by Troy Dukart
The thought that he might be dead did cross my mind a few times, which helped to cope with the fact that I had a relationship with Grey. I never dated anyone else besides Strafe in my life, and it was really tough to get around that fact. Grey was more than someone to be with though, he helped me stay alive. It might've been selfish, but I wouldn't let this break me down. The guards would try to lay with me, but most of the time I could see them coming and avoid them.
When I saw Strafe alive though, I felt weak. I needed to be around his strength and energy. Grey was a nice man, but didn't have the zest Strafe did. He comforted me but Grey could be cold at times. Strafe was always warm and welcoming.
What was running through my mind though, was what Strafe was becoming. He had always been a little childish but it seemed like he was really growing up and trying to be something great. He had found a purpose in helping to defeat the Senti and get us home. I didn't want him to be on the front lines, but so much had happened to us.
I found out I had Guardian power when I got captured. I knew each person they were going to take, who was going to get sick and even who was going to die before anyone else. I had to keep everything a secret, because I predicted they would take advantage of me. That man in black, Barzakh, would always look at me funny. I could tell he knew what I could do, but for some reason he never acted. I couldn't read his future, no matter how hard I tried.
So many questions lingered in my head, but one thing that I sat and thought about most was, who did I want to be with? Strafe was with another woman now, just like I was with another man; maybe it wasn't meant to last? My heart would always tug me back into debate though, whenever I would think of all the times I had with him.
It seemed like I was destined to be something greater than anything I could think of, just like Strafe. Should I become a soldier and fight for freedom like him or stay with Grey? My brain had no idea what it wanted, but when I listened to my heart, I could tell it knew where it wanted to be. I just hoped he felt the same.
Chapter 11
Strafe
I woke to a breathtaking sight. Argenta was writing in a diary of sorts and smiled at me as I walked outside. There was a wonderful, distinct smell of the ocean which permeated the entire cycle and the sun shined bright upon the sands. I got out of to see people running up and down the beaches, playing Brave-Ball.
There was a group of people praying in the same direction which caught my eye. When I followed their direction, my legs gave out underneath me; out in the middle of the ocean was a series of islands, floating in the sky. Rousseau came running up to me in sheer excitement, “Strafe! Can you believe this! My god it's bril!”
“I, I, these are incredible!” I uttered in amazement. All of the refugees had gathered near a post on the beach. The people of Zindaqe had already seen us and had come down to help, some of them warriors, some of them medics. Roya was already talking to one of the islanders, who embraced her like he was her brother. I looked back up to the floating islands to see a waterfall cascading down to the ocean. Each island was huge, about the size of a small city. From what I could tell, there were five of them. Zon had finished meditating and waved us to meet him over with Roya. I wasn't expecting such a warm welcome.
“Blood of my blood, it is good to have you back sister,” the tribesman told Roya.
“Blood of my blood, brother Itust, it is good to see your smile. I have brought friends with me, and we were hoping to shelter them for a while. Can I see Lady Nefertiti?” Roya asked.
Itust was a muscular warrior that wore an islander hat with many different colored feathers and carried a spear. He had a kind face but many scars across his body. They seemed to be war prizes from his previous battles.
“She is skyward, praying to Ren. Are all these wanderers your friends?” Itust replied.
“Yes and no brother, these three are my companions on my pilgrimage, Strafe-Sah, Rousseau-Sah, and Yoichi-Sah. The rest here are all in need of a place to sleep. Can we go see her Itust? I need to explain myself as well as what's going on in the world,” Roya told him.
“Your companions, what do they know of Lady Nefertiti? They do not worship our god,” Itust commented as he tightened his grip on his spear.
“Brother, no need to fear, they respect Ren and Lady Nefertiti. They have helped me survive this long to come back to warn of invaders coming to take our beloved islands. Please brother, they mean no harm. They are who Falco told me to find,” Roya said as she put her hand on his arm.
Itust snorted a few times, but nodded his head,
“I almost died, protecting you, to find these people. After I returned I told them what happened. At first they were angry, but the new Lady has pardoned you and your family, because she trusted you. Your family is gone, they feared for their lives and escaped. We have not seen them in a while,” Itust illustrated in the sand with his spear.
“Where did they go?” Roya quivered as she asked.
“I don't know, but maybe the Lady does. If you trust these outsiders, I will too. If they move against Lady Nefertiti though, it will be their last.”
We thanked him for his generosity and were allowed passage to see the Oracle of the Islands, Lady Nefertiti. Out of the blue, a golden owl landed on Roya's shoulder. She seemed ecstatic to see it. She cradled its head as it rubbed against her.
“Whoa! Brilliant!” Rousseau commented.
“Hmm, don't tell me you went to wizarding school,” I smirked.
“What?” Roya said as she pet the owl, “Lady's of these islands are given a rare type of owl to symbolize their transition to leadership Strafe. Her name is Fena, and I have missed her very much.”
“She's gorgeous,” I marveled as I pet the owl, “Can she do anything cool?”
“Whatever I want her to Strafe,” Roya smiled. Fena stayed with us and perched on Roya's shoulder.
The Islanders only allowed us four to proceed while the rest stayed back. Argenta said she would protect Yessa and Tom. They had asked for our weapons. When I tried to give them the God Blade, none of the warriors could pick it up.
Figuring it made no difference, we were allowed to proceed with our arms. Itust led us toward the shoreline where a xenolithic structure could be seen beneath the waves. It looked like a runway of black and blue colored stones that shined bright next to the white sand. With the butt-end of his spear, Itust poked a small crevice protruding out.
The runway was about two hundred feet long. It began to rise up above the water until it rested about two inches above the sea level. When it hit the air, the stones began to glow bright and little dots of light began floating upwards out of them.
“Here is the Heaven's Gate. This sacred tool was created by our ancestors to help us fly like the birds. Please be respectful,” Itust informed us.
“We will my blood. Everyone, let me show you the way!” Roya cheered with excitement.
She flung her sword over her back and got into a runner's stance. She closed her eyes for a moment before she began to sprint down the runway. As she was making her way down, the little dots of light began to “stick” to her body. Fena was flying next to her.
The longer she ran down, the more dots would stick. At the very end of the runway, there was an oval pad where many dots of light were hovering. When Roya stepped on the oval pad, she jumped up and a flash of light shot her skyward. She was catapulted through the air to the lowest island. Fena flew up to meet her.
“Damn! That's real magic!” Rousseau remarked as he grabbed his head.
“It is not magic pale-skin, it is a treasure from our god Ren. Her graciousness has guided Zindaqe's path for thousands of years,” Itust replied.
“Magic, treasures, gods, it's all fun to me!” Rousseau snubbed as he shrugged his shoulders.
Itust snorted again and pushed Rousseau in front of the runway. He pointed forward and nodded his head, giving Rousseau the sign to make the run. To Itust's surprise, Rousseau turned on his aura and made the run in two seconds
before being shot skyward like Roya.
“Mighty Ren, are these your angels?!” Itust noted in disbelief.
“There are no gods or angels, only men,” Zon commented; he also ran forth and was shot up to the island.
Looking back at me, Itust looked into my eyes and patted me on the shoulder, “Where do you come from, Strafe-Sah?”
“I'm from New Santa Barbara,” I told him.
“Where you are from, does a god watch over you like our Ren does here?” Itust inquired.
“Gods believed in around my world but neither is greater than the other,” I explained.
“Hmm, this sounds nice. Have you seen your God in your dreams?” he asked curiously.
“I'm still trying to find out what I believe my friend,” I told him before I ran down the runway. Stepping on the ancient stones made a sound I'd never heard before. It was a sharp timbre that clapped softly. Walking on them was easy on my feet and the longer I ran down, the lighter my body felt. Dots of light stuck to me, like a dandelion's seeds. Warmth spread across my body and the ocean breeze flapped through my hair like a running one's hands on silk. I hope I get to do this again, this feels incredible!
When I made it to the launch pad, I felt as light as a feather. All of the dots of light on me shined bright. I looked up to the sun and as soon as I raised one leg, the dots of light exploded, and I was blasted into the air.
Gliding along, some of the dots still clung on, but slowly fell to the ocean as I flew skyward. The speed was comfortable, not too slow to experience vertigo when I looked down yet not too fast as to have the wind blind me. I looked behind me before reaching the island to see a lush forest close to the shore and beyond that, the desert we crossed. Turning back I found myself slowly descending onto a launch pad similar to the one I came from. Dots of light cushioned my fall.
People had gathered around and looked eager to see who we were. Zon was pushing children away gently on their heads as they tried to touch his sword and bandana. Rousseau was laughing and making funny faces with some other ones while making fun of Zon's discomfort. Roya was the true draw, as people of all ages and sizes were smiling, crying and rejoicing her return. Hugs were being given out like handshakes, as well as them rubbing their eyelashes together from side to side. It was a hero's welcome if I had ever seen one.
“So much for a vigilante's return,” I noted. For sake of curiosity, I approached the ledge and looked down to the ocean. Seeing how far we had risen made me lose my balance slightly and I feel backward on my butt. “Damn!” I shouted when I realized how high we were, it must have been a mile up!
Some of the locals had seen me and helped me to my feet. As I got up, I went to shake their hands but they looked at me in confusion.
It was surprising to see they didn't understand what I was doing. Instead, a middle-aged villager approached and stood in front of me. He smiled and pointed at himself and another man standing next to them. They then looked each other in the eye, put the palm of their right hand on their left breast, put their left palm on the other's shoulder, and moved their eyelashes together side to side. Afterward they invited me to try.
I approached the middle-aged villager and did as they showed me. Right palm on left breast, left palm on his shoulder, and came in close to do the eyelash rub. Awkward was the way to describe it, and the locals could see it on my face. It tickled a lot! I stood still as he went back and forth and afterwards rubbed my eyes. The people around me found it fascinating and quite funny to see me try this out for the first time.
“That was, interesting!” I said to the middle-aged villager as he patted my back. When I spoke, I could tell they didn't understand me, but that was okay. One younger, teenage boy spoke with the words he knew,
“You funny!” he said as he held out his arm to shake my hand. One by one, they all wanted to try the handshake. After we got done, I approached the group to see what was going on. Roya ushered me into a large tent and pointed to a pillow on the floor for me to sit on. Rousseau and Zon joined.
We waited a few minutes before some warriors entered, along with Roya and a teenage girl draped in a golden fleece dress with jewels. She too had an owl perched on her shoulder. Fena and the other owl flew to a branch and nestled together. The teenager wore a crown of equal prestige but it didn't look like King Othen's from Yuwheria. The crown draped over her hair like gold chainmail. Only one horn rose from the top, and it looked like a rhino's.
“Diehea Rohman esre youwhean Nefertiti,” one of the guards said in Zindaquean.
We looked around before Roya translated,
“He said to please bow to our Lady Nefertiti.”
On my knees, I held my hands together in prayer and bowed; the guards seemed pleased. Holding Roya's arm, she circled the tent and sat down on an elevated stone chair in front of us next to the owls. Roya stood next to her, “Jowhean denti,” Lady Nefertiti said.
“Welcome my friends,” Roya translated.
“Thank you for your hospitality my lady,” Rousseau replied.
“Bogoen chante. Lalten, Poporoto es findafally,” Lady Nefertiti asked.
“Honored guests, please, tell us your story,” Roya translated.
Each of us told Lady Nefertiti where we were from, what our lives were like back home, and what we thought of the Dream Islands. We also discussed the war and how the Senti had already created bases on Zindaquean land.
Lady Nefertiti was particularly interested in Rousseau's royalty and was disturbed to learn the Senti had grown Slates from humans. She also wished to know more about the Native American culture from back on Earth. I told her while there were no floating islands back home, there were some similarities to Eternia. We then focused on the looming threat on their doorstep.
“Your highness, we are afraid your home is in danger. From what we can tell, the Senti are collecting sacred artifacts from nations around the world called Guardian Keys. The Federation has affected us all, even in my world, resulting in destruction and theft,” I explained.
Roya translated my message and her reply was, “If this is true, have your nations fallen?”
“No, they have not,” Rousseau said to her; he closed his eyes and murmured, “Mine has sided with them, while the others fight on.”
“The Lady is saddened for your losses. She is curious what we can do to help you,” Roya told us.
“Hide your Guardian Key to protect your tribe,” Zon bowed to them.
With a nod of her head and a motion of her hand, we proceeded out of the tent. Lady Nefertiti led us through the floating city. Stone houses, streets and buildings were mixed into the tropical forest which added a nice contrast. There was a huge mountain in the middle of the city that was covered in green grass, with a lookout on the tip top. Everything and everyone were at peace.
Looking up I could see the other floating islands, which looked like floating green and red moons. Raising my sword up, I looked through the orb to magnify the view, and it was fascinating. I could see hieroglyphics adorned the city, and were a script I had never seen before. Animals, pyramids and people were among the objects used in their writing, and colors helped distinguish the characters from one another. It was similar to ancient Egyptian.
We trekked across the stone and forested city to the other side of the island, finding ourselves in front of another Heaven's Gate. Looking up I could see the distance was twice as long as the first one and the islands curved around the bay; not in a straight line as I thought.
“Is this strong enough to get us to the next island?” I questioned.
“Yes Strafe, but we will need some help getting across. Unfortunately, you may not be of liking it,” Roya responded.
“Hah, does it cost money because I can have my uncle write them a check,” Rousseau joked and shrugged his shoulders.
“No, but thank you Rousseau. You need wings to fly that far,” Roya told us.
“We don't have any Mag-Cycles,” Zon reminded her.
“Yes,” Roya
nodded, “But there is another way, although, the result is forever. You cannot take it away.”
“How so?” I wondered.
Roya nodded her head and Fena and the other owl flew into the forest. After a few minutes they had something in their claws. Some of the warriors had a box with drawings of insects on it. They grabbed whatever the owls had retrieved and put them into the box.
In front of where we were standing, they set the box down and we could hear chirping coming from inside it. Afterward, they bowed to her and walked toward the Heaven's Gate. She then slid her hand across the top and looked at us, “Hundreds of years before the cycles and warships were invented, Eternia looked to Zindaqe for means of flight. There is a special animal here, the Tongwa, which my ancestors used to help them glide between islands. It's an insect that has long wings but has a hard time surviving by itself. We noticed that some animals we hunted had the ability to glide away from us when they should have none. After we captured enough of these animals, we found that the Tongwa had buried themselves under their skin for protection. In return though, the animals could use the Tongwa's wings to help them fly.”
Stretching her arms wide and high above her head, she blinked and when she opened her eyes, translucent wings of various colors sprouted from her arms. They were beautiful, and cascaded crystal catching the sunlight. We stood there in disbelief.
“Holy molly! That's incredible mate!” Rousseau said as he walked up to examine the wings.
“I have never seen such things as this,” Zon stuttered in a rare moment of awe for him.
She blinked once again, and the wings retracted underneath her skin. I noticed afterward red and blue marks on her inside wrists, and wondered why she hadn't told us before.
“How do they work? Do you swallow them or something?” Rousseau joked.